Going for a test drive, so to speak
Today I took my puppy for a test drive.
That is, while her current family was visiting relatives to exchange Christmas presents (I know, it's a bit late), I got to have the pup over for over five hours and get some one-on-one time with her. =)
It was good for both of us. I'd never seen her without her siblings around, and though you learn something about a dog from watching her around other puppies, you also learn something about her by spending time with her alone. Although she certainly had rambunctious moments, she was a lot more subdued tonight than she was the last time I was at Cindy's. Could be the night, could be the new scenario... who knows? Still, it was good to have that individual time.
It also gave her a chance to get to know her soon-to-be home, without the stress of having to live someplace new just yet. She explored a little bit, but it was clear that she couldn't handle more than small doses of "new." She'd start out feeling adventurous, but after a few minutes of sniffing around, she'd start scratching abruptly (a doggie stress reliever) and whimper. That seemed to be her sign that she needed some reassurance and security right about now. After a while, she'd feel better.
When you're that little, it's easy to understand how much there is that would be new and scary in a big house like mine. It'll take some time for her to figure it all out. But she's got a start, at least.
Maybe I'm only going to look foolish in a few weeks, but I'm going to chance saying it publicly: I think housebreaking her is going to be no problem at all. We were 4/4 tonight, and the very first one I didn't even need to coach her at all. She sniffed the puppy pad, played for a minute or two, and then headed to the pad and went right to her business. Whenever she started to get a bit squirmy, I brought here there. Seemed to work well. =)
I'm still working on naming her. I think that'll end up being much harder than housebreaking her. It's important that she not only get a nice name or a name that I happen to like... she needs to get the RIGHT name, the one that's hers. I keep looking, and I'm not sure I've found it yet. But spending a whole evening with her alone helped. It gave me a better sense of who she is.
We'll probably be doing a few more extended visits like this over the next few weeks, to help both of us get ready for the Big Day.
It was good to have a dog in the house again. Today marked three weeks since losing Nikki, and also three weeks since first meeting my puppy. That seems to me like a good time to have the new addition over for a visit, now that I think about it.
Regarding Nikki, I'll be able to pick up her remains in Fargo when I'm there on Monday. That'll be kind of weird... I'll need to find a place to keep them until I can bury her this spring. I'm asking around to find someone here in town who does woodworking and might be willing to make a small box for her. I'd like that a lot better than some mass-produced urn.
Time to hit the hay... this was a longer update than I expected it to be, but there was lots of dog news to report.
That is, while her current family was visiting relatives to exchange Christmas presents (I know, it's a bit late), I got to have the pup over for over five hours and get some one-on-one time with her. =)
It was good for both of us. I'd never seen her without her siblings around, and though you learn something about a dog from watching her around other puppies, you also learn something about her by spending time with her alone. Although she certainly had rambunctious moments, she was a lot more subdued tonight than she was the last time I was at Cindy's. Could be the night, could be the new scenario... who knows? Still, it was good to have that individual time.
It also gave her a chance to get to know her soon-to-be home, without the stress of having to live someplace new just yet. She explored a little bit, but it was clear that she couldn't handle more than small doses of "new." She'd start out feeling adventurous, but after a few minutes of sniffing around, she'd start scratching abruptly (a doggie stress reliever) and whimper. That seemed to be her sign that she needed some reassurance and security right about now. After a while, she'd feel better.
When you're that little, it's easy to understand how much there is that would be new and scary in a big house like mine. It'll take some time for her to figure it all out. But she's got a start, at least.
Maybe I'm only going to look foolish in a few weeks, but I'm going to chance saying it publicly: I think housebreaking her is going to be no problem at all. We were 4/4 tonight, and the very first one I didn't even need to coach her at all. She sniffed the puppy pad, played for a minute or two, and then headed to the pad and went right to her business. Whenever she started to get a bit squirmy, I brought here there. Seemed to work well. =)
I'm still working on naming her. I think that'll end up being much harder than housebreaking her. It's important that she not only get a nice name or a name that I happen to like... she needs to get the RIGHT name, the one that's hers. I keep looking, and I'm not sure I've found it yet. But spending a whole evening with her alone helped. It gave me a better sense of who she is.
We'll probably be doing a few more extended visits like this over the next few weeks, to help both of us get ready for the Big Day.
It was good to have a dog in the house again. Today marked three weeks since losing Nikki, and also three weeks since first meeting my puppy. That seems to me like a good time to have the new addition over for a visit, now that I think about it.
Regarding Nikki, I'll be able to pick up her remains in Fargo when I'm there on Monday. That'll be kind of weird... I'll need to find a place to keep them until I can bury her this spring. I'm asking around to find someone here in town who does woodworking and might be willing to make a small box for her. I'd like that a lot better than some mass-produced urn.
Time to hit the hay... this was a longer update than I expected it to be, but there was lots of dog news to report.
posted by Bob at
11:22 PM
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